13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
Director: Michael Bay
Starring: John Krasinski, James Badge Dale, Pablo Schreiber
Three stars
The director of Armageddon, Transformers and Pearl Harbor, Michael Bay is not exactly known for subtlety or nuance, so it would be unwise to hold out much hope for his latest film, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi.
Based on the real-life terror attack on a US diplomatic compound in Libya that left four Americans dead on September 11, 2012 the film wilfully ignores political complexities and subtext in favour of a gung-ho tribute to the people involved.
Set in Benghazi, a cauldron of a city, less than a year after the fall of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, Bay sets the scene as he introduces a team of ex-military personnel-turned-private security contractors who gather as part of the CIA’s Global Response Staff to protect US diplomats, including ambassador J Christopher Stevens (Matt Letscher).
Chief among them are former Navy SEALs Jack Silva (John Krasinski) and Tyrone ‘Rone’ Woods (James Badge Dale), old friends who yearn to be back home with their families. That’s about as deep as the characterisation gets – perhaps because the film takes place over such a short time-frame – the 13 hours of the title
The film kicks into high gear when militants attack the US compound that houses the ambassador and officials. This is a terrifyingly realised sequence.
Bay is never better than when he’s conducting these bullet-fests, and he plants you right in the heart of the attack. He says this is his “most real” film yet. It is hard to disagree – mortars explode, fires roar and crackle and you can almost smell the smoke.
There is more to the situation than first appears, however, as the agency chief (David Costabile), based in a CIA compound a mile away, delays sending Silva and his men to rescue those under fire.
Bay never really grapples with the whys and wherefores, preferring instead to get on with the action as the soldiers are suddenly forced to circle the wagons and defend against marauding insurgents.
Krasinski, an actor with a track record in comedy – most notable as Jim Halpert in the US version of TV sitcom The Office – does well in the type of macho action role he has never attempted before. It is just a pity he is operating in such a one-dimensional, Bay-driven world.
True, it’s an intense ride, expertly choreographed – but one wonders what Kathryn Bigelow might have done with the material.
Bay succeeds in honouring the brave few – but achieves little else.
• 13 Hours is in cinemas now